poaching news stories on Newser

Rhino Dies in Anti-Poaching Demonstration

Rob Quinn — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:13:42 CST

A demonstration of a new anti-poaching procedure came to a tragic end in South Africa yesterday. A white rhino that had been sedated in order for veterinarians to implant a tracking device in his horn—and inject it with dye and a pesticide toxic to humans—died under anesthesia in...

Thai Elephants' New Threat: Poachers After Their Meat

Dustin Lushing — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:17:05 CST

A new gastronomic fad in Thailand is pushing the country's elephants a step closer to extinction. Poachers, who have historically hunted elephants to obtain their ivory tusks, are now killing the giant mammals and selling their trunks and sexual organs to be eaten as food, reports the AP . Consumption of...

2011: Deadly Year for Elephants

Evann Gastaldo — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 08:39:57 CST

This year will ring out as one of the deadliest for elephants since ivory sales were banned more than two decades ago. Officials seized tusks from a record 2,500 elephants, and while some of those could be from long-dead animals, the news still isn't good. "As most large-scale ivory...

Western Black Rhino Extinct

Rob Quinn — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 03:36:00 CST

The western black rhino, one of four subspecies of black rhino, is now a thing of the past, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature's "Red List." The group has declared the black rhino species native to West Africa extinct and says another rhino species, Central Africa's northern...

Sharks Massacred Off Colombia

Matt Cantor — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 14:42:05 CDT

Divers have discovered the bodies of some 2,000 sharks, many with their fins cut off, in Colombian waters. The apparent slaughter of Galapagos, silky, and hammerhead sharks occurred in a giant wildlife sanctuary around the island of Malpelo off the country’s coast, the Guardian reports. The divers, who were...

Florida Wildlife Officers Nab Poachers Via Facebook

John Johnson — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 18:57:19 CDT

Florida wildlife officials have a great new weapon in the search for those who kill wildlife illegally—vanity. It seems people just can't resist bragging on Facebook about that fish they snagged out of season or the gator they shot, reports the Orlando Sentinel . In fact, the state wildlife commission...

Feds Make $1M Ivory Bust

Rob Quinn — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:10:28 CDT

Tusks from large numbers of elephants killed by poachers in west and central Africa ended up in the hands of a Philadelphia art dealer, federal investigators say. The dealer is accused of paying a co-conspirator to travel to Africa, buy raw ivory for carving, and stain it so the specimens...

Poachers Will Spend Next 4 Deer Seasons in Jail

Sarah Whitmire — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 16:43:19 CDT

A father and son in Oregon who pleaded guilty to poaching deer—a lot of deer—have gotten a unique punishment: They have to report to jail on the first day of hunting season for the next four years and remain locked up for 90 days each year, reports the...

Wild Tigers Could Be Extinct in 12 Years

aarontco — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 21:00:55 CST

Tigers could vanish from the 13 countries where they still roam wild unless urgent action is taken to safeguard habitats and deter poaching, experts warned at a "tiger summit" in St. Petersburg today. In only 100 years, the tiger population has dwindled from an estimated 100,000 to about 3,...